


The Chance to Fly

by voodoochild



Category: Glee
Genre: Cuddling and Snuggling, Episode Tag, Gen, Vignette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-11-30
Updated: 2010-11-30
Packaged: 2017-10-13 11:31:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/136885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voodoochild/pseuds/voodoochild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kurt can either go it alone after what happens with Karofsky, or he can lean on his friends a little. It's a good thing he goes for the latter. (Spoilers for "Never Been Kissed".)</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Chance to Fly

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Multi-Fandom Cuddling Meme. Title from "Defying Gravity" from Wicked.

The very first thing he wants to do after Karofsky kisses him is take the longest, hottest shower known to man.

(And fuck, how much bullshit is that, that his life is forever going to be divided into "Before Karofsky" and "After Karofsky"?)

The second thing he wants to do is call Blaine and cry. But if he ever wants to have a chance in hell with Blaine, he can't cry and he can't freak out at the guy for an hour or so, no matter how badly he wants to. He also starts thinking very seriously about driving over to Dalton and throwing himself at Blaine's feet and holding on as tightly as he can, but that's also off the menu. There's still a godawful two hours of classes to get through, and he will not let that idiot Neanderthal ruin his grades any more than he already has.

So he walks into geometry and takes the seat furthest in the corner and doesn't say a word the entire lesson, even though Ms. Osterman calls on him a bunch of times. None of his friends are in this class, so no one suspects anything is wrong. French class is worse - Tina and Mercedes are in it, not to mention Madame Lisette (she's such a faker, like no one knows her real name is Barbara Smith) is a much better teacher than Ms. Osterman. She takes one look at him and tells Mercedes to take him to the nurse before he throws up in class.

He's just rounding the corner toward the stairwell to go down to the nurse's office when Mercedes tugs him in the opposite direction, toward the glee room and the squishy couch Puck and Finn found for them in some garage sale.

"Boyfriend, what's wrong?" Mercedes asks, sitting him down, handing him a pillow, and curling up next to him.

He doesn't mean to tell her, but it just comes out.

"Karofsky."

"You know, I'm getting real sick of him messing with you. What's the point of having Finn for a brother when you still get bullied? What, did he throw you in a dumpster? He can't have slushied you, that's your Burberry coat and liquid would show-"

He doesn't mean to cry, either, but he grips the pillow and the tears fall despite himself. Slushie-ing and dumpster-diving he's learned how to handle, but a meathead like Karofsky being his first kiss? He just wants to vomit, scrub his lips off and curl up in bed with _Fosse_ on the DVD player.

Mercedes touches his arm lightly and he realizes he's scrubbing at his mouth with the back of his hand. "Kurt," she asks, voice as tiny and scared as his, "what did he do?"

"He kissed me. I listened to Blaine and confronted Karofsky about always shoving me around. I said I'd never change, and he shoved me against a locker and kissed me."

"Oh my god," Mercedes breathes.

Her hand tightens, and he just can't deal. He throws his arms around her shoulders and feels like he can't breathe until she's rubbing his back and he's half in her lap clinging to her. This would have been weird a year ago, he realizes, but they're over the whole Mercedes-crushing-on-him thing. And he just needs so badly to be around someone uncomplicated and who won't bring up confusing "oh god, I like them" feelings (like Blaine).

He hasn't _really_ hugged anyone in a long time. He hasn't been completely stretched out next to someone and felt safe in even longer. Mercedes is a mama bear, though - ain't nobody hurting him while she's around - and she doesn't care that he's using her purple chiffon Faith 21 top as a tissue. She's just combing her fingers carefully through his hair (because if anyone knows how long it takes to do his hair, it's Mercedes) and letting him use her as a pillow.

But the bell rings and in approximately four and a half minutes, there's going to be people all over the glee room. He sits up and digs for a moist towelette in his bag, pressing the tears and redness out of his eyes. He looks for his cell phone, and Mercedes has got it, scrolling through his contact list.

"Hello, is this Blaine?" Kurt's heart stops, and he gives her a panicked look, but she just slides off the couch and raises an eyebrow at him. "Hi, I'm Mercedes, Kurt's friend - yeah, I'm in glee club - oh, hey, thanks! I didn't know you guys were there. Listen, do you have plans for tonight?"

Oh my god, she is _not_ allowed to set him up on a date, and he's giving her emphatic "NO!" gestures for good measure.

"It's really not my place to say, but Kurt had a shitty day, and I think he'd really like to see you. We had tickets for Repo tonight at the drive-in, but you should take mine. Yes, seriously. Great, I'll tell him! Hope to meet you sometime!"

"I hate you," Kurt says, when she hangs up the phone and tosses it back to him.

"No, you don't," she says.

"No, I don't. Thanks, sweetie."

She grins. "Any time. Just wear the Graverobber outfit we planned and knock him out of his cute little socks."

Blaine's eyes kind of cross when Kurt shows up in the Graverobber outfit - open-necked shirt, pleather pants, long coat Tina lent him - and well, that's a success. Then again, so is Blaine's Luigi Largo outfit, especially the pinstriped pants and big fake knife. And it turns out Blaine knows all the words and the audience-participation, which is just SO unfairly awesome of him.

He really, really owes Mercedes.


End file.
